UW-Stout 80, UW-Eau Claire 79
EAU CLAIRE (January 8, 2020) - UW-Stout found themselves in a familiar situation.
Down at halftime, the Blue Devils pulled even, then took the lead. But unlike several games earlier this season, Stout did not falter and went on to notch their first conference win of the season, an 80-79 nail-biter over nearby rival UW-Eau Claire Wednesday at Zorn Arena.
Stout (5-8, 1-1 WIAC) trailed by nine points, 39-31, at halftime. Led by the game's leading scorer,
Jon Ciriacks, the Blue Devils chipped away at the Eau Claire lead and took a lead of their own, 49-45, over the first eight-plus minutes of the half, going on an 18-6 run as Ciriacks hit 10 of his game-high 23 points in the run.
It was a situation Stout had been in plenty of games already this season, but this time the Blue Devils were ready to handle their opponent's comeback.
The Blugolds (10-3, 1-1 WIAC), which were getting votes in the latest D3hoops.com Top 25 poll, took the lead, 52-51, at 10:17. Twenty seconds later, Ciriacks made two free throws to give Stout a 53-52 lead and the Blue Devils never trailed again, notching the program's first conference win since Feb. 7, 2018 and Stout's first win over Eau Claire since Jan. 17, 2018.
Stout built up a seven point lead, 61-54, with 7:49 left as Ciriacks sank another pair of free throws,
TYreese Alexander completed the layup and a free throw and
Cliff McCray hit a 3-pointer in a 7-2 run.
Eau Claire would three times tie the game, but Stout would answer to regain the lead each time, the third time on a momentum-solidifying dunk by Alexander with just over a minute left.
Down the final 45 seconds of the game, Stout would answer from the free throw line, making all six free throw attempts - three by
Josh Mericle.
Eau Claire had a last gasp as Carter Brooks hit a 3-pointer with 12 seconds left to pull to within 80-78 and then nine seconds later, the Blugolds made one free throw but missed the second.
Ciriacks scored 20 points in the second half to lead Stout. Alexander scored 13 points and
Marcus Hill came off the bench to score 10. McCray pulled down 10 rebounds. Stout's bench outscored Eau Claire's bench 21-6. The Blue Devils dropped in a season-high 24 of 34 free throws to 15 of 19 for Eau Claire. The Blue Devils committed a season-low 11 turnovers.
The Blugolds had five players in double figures. Cole Rabedeaux matched Ciriacks' 23 points. Brooks scored 14, Spencer Page 13, Blake Wacholz 12 and Cam Kuepers 11.
Stout returns to Johnson Fieldhouse for the first time since Dec. 20 when they host defending national champion UW-Oshkosh, Saturday, Jan. 11 at 3 p.m.
